China to expand infrastructure investment in 2019

BEIJING — China will expand effective investment, accelerating the implementation of a number of key projects, according to a government work report.

Premier Li Keqiang delivered the report on March 5 at the annual session of the National People’s Congress, the top legislature.

Premier Li said 800 billion yuan ($119 billion) will be invested in railway construction, 1.8 trillion yuan in road construction and waterway projects. Work will start on a number of major water conservancy projects and the planning and construction of the Sichuan-Tibet Railway will be sped up.

Other infrastructure mentioned in the report include intercity transportation, logistics, utilities, disaster prevention and mitigation, and civil and general aviation, and next-generation information infrastructure.

Premier Li said 577.6 billion yuan is included in the central government budget for related investment this year, an increase of 40 billion yuan from last year.

China will explore new forms of project financing, lower as appropriate capital contribution requirements for infrastructure projects, make good use of developmental financial instruments, and attract more private capital into projects in key areas, he said.